Prelude

Seeing his teacher's surprise, Ebner had anticipated the reaction but couldn't come up with a fully convincing reason, so he simply said, "I've always loved reading, even before I became a Beyonder. It helped me digest the potion a lot."

Detective Isengard Stanton's eyes lit up at Ebner's use of the term "digestion," and he said knowingly, "So, you understood the Acting method from the very beginning!" Due to his oath with the Church of Knowledge, Isengard couldn't openly discuss the Acting method. But if his student already knew, there was no restriction.

Orthodox Churches required Beyonders to swear on a sacred artifact to avoid spreading knowledge about the Acting method.

Aware of this, Ebner didn't resent his teacher's lack of teaching on the matter.

Noting his student's calm response, Detective Isengard sighed, "It seems you know more than I suspected… Whether you deduced it on your own or learned it from another source, this is a good thing. Your future is brighter than mine—I spent over ten years at 'Student of Ratiocination' without fully digesting it. I only pieced together the Acting method when I forced an advancement to Detective (Knowledge Keeper)."

So that's why you're only at Sequence 7 despite knowing the Acting method…

Ebner nodded, understanding why, but chose not to pursue the subject further, preferring to avoid any questions that might lead to lying to his teacher.

"Teacher, you seemed pleased when you came in. Good news?" Ebner changed the topic.

Isengard collected himself, grateful to steer the conversation away. With a familiar grin, he replied, "The Mandated Punisher squad activated a sacred artifact and still couldn't capture those Rose School of Thought members! They've really embarrassed themselves this time."

Knowledge Church and the Church of Storms may be at odds, but isn't this a little extreme for schadenfreude? Ebner thought, though he felt a certain respect for the official Beyonder teams from the original storyline.

After all, they're not only pitiable but also protectors!

Then, he realized the recent battle had taken place near his usual public library… and not far from Jane's family's clothing store.

"How could I have missed a raid so close by?" Ebner wondered and asked aloud.

"That's because the Church of Storms used a Level 2 Sealed Artifact. I'm not certain of its name, but it can pull Beyonders within a certain radius into a peculiar enclosed space," Detective Isengard explained when asked.

A Sealed Artifact like that? I wonder which pathway it's from… Ebner pondered.

...

Late that night, Mr. Grant, who hadn't ventured out to collect corpses for once, suddenly woke with a start, sitting upright and scanning his surroundings. With Spirit Vision granted by the "Corpse Collector" potion, he saw every spirit within the shop.

Yet he found nothing unusual. Confused, he turned on the gas lamp and gazed outside the window. The world lay silent under the soft red light of the moon, blanketed in tranquility.

His wife, Mrs. Grant, awoke and, seeing her husband sweating at the window, asked, "Darling, is something wrong?"

Shaken from his thoughts, Mr. Grant managed a forced smile and replied, "Nothing… just a nightmare."

...

Inside the clothing store's warehouse, a figure in a black tailcoat and dark red cloak slowly took shape, revealing a man in his forties. His hair was slicked back, his eyes reflecting an emerald sheen devoid of warmth.

As he materialized, he issued a low command to a slim yet muscular man hiding in the shadows, "Taylor, suppress your malice! The man who lives here is a Beyonder with heightened perception!"

"Master Steve, I can't hold back much longer! And why should I?" Taylor scratched his spiky hair and rasped, "I want to tear these people apart and listen to their screams! If I keep holding back, I'll lose control!"

The wraith, Steve, ignored him and vanished from the warehouse. Nearby, the zombie Jason tossed Taylor a severed human torso and said, "Our prey hasn't taken the bait yet, so random killing isn't wise. Tomorrow night, or the night after at the latest, I'll let you deal with the two women here. For now, this will have to do. I killed him just days ago."

"Not exactly fresh…" Taylor grumbled, but he accepted the offering.

...

The next morning, since it was Wednesday, Ebner and Xio went to the underground shooting range at the Cherwood Borough Police Station as usual. But this time, they were greeted not by the mouthy officer, Alys, but by an elderly officer named Brier.

"Where's Alys? On leave?" Ebner asked curiously.

Officer Brier cast him a sidelong glance, then answered with exaggerated delight, "You don't know? That rascal Alys ran away from home!" It was evident Brier didn't like Alys and eagerly shared the details of his wayward colleague's escapades.

"Ran away?" Ebner hadn't expected this answer, and he pressed for more details, "Why?"

"Alys left a note for the Chief saying he was off to 'pursue his dreams'! Hah, the kid's got nerve—especially since the Chief had just arranged for his promotion to inspector. Now someone else can have that spot…" Officer Brier laughed with satisfaction.

Alys' dream, huh… I remember he wanted to be an adventurer? Maybe Anne Gwen's departure in that missing person case influenced him—he did look out of it afterward…

Ebner fell silent for a moment, silently wishing his unlikely friend well. Brier seemed disappointed at losing an audience for his gossip.

Once they reached the shooting range and Brier departed, Xio frowned and muttered seriously, "No matter what, it's wrong to ridicule someone just because they have dreams." She, too, had her own dreams—dreams of clearing her father's name.

"Exactly! When you're young, you should pursue your dreams. Besides, Alys didn't seem cut out to be a cop anyway…" Ebner agreed. Then he wondered what his own dreams were—helping Klein become a stabilizing force? Solving the looming apocalypse and surviving as long as possible? Or perhaps… going home?

He sighed, brushing aside stray thoughts to focus on the day's training.

And before long…

Xio was stunned! She could hardly believe that Ebner, who'd been at beginner's level in firearms and swordsmanship the previous Saturday, now displayed the presence of a master! If not for her superior physique, she might not have been able to win at all.

Even with that advantage, Xio barely scraped a win in their sparring session.

"How did you get so strong, so fast?" Xio asked, panting.

"Because I've advanced to Sequence 8," Ebner replied with a grin.

Unaware of when he'd become a Beyonder or his pathway, Xio wasn't especially shocked. Instead, she merely nodded and said, "Ah, that explains it. Congratulations!"

She took a book from her bag and handed it to him. "This is Fors' Storm Manor, an advance copy. Consider it a gift for your promotion!"

Taking it with a grin, Ebner flipped through the pages, "So it's finally published? How's it doing?" Although he knew the book would become popular—even praised by Mr. Fool in the original novel—it had been pushed out early under Xio's urging…

"It's doing great! Fors has really made a name for herself. She's being invited to speak at all sorts of literary salons," Xio boasted proudly on Fors' behalf.

Out loud, he suggested, "It'll depend on Fors' performance. Ideally, she could subtly display a hint of Beyonder ability at one of these salons…"

But Xio only pursed her lips before saying, "Ebner, you're thinking too far ahead… Fors is still cooped up at home, saying she needs a break. She hasn't accepted a single invitation."

"Maybe she's just setting a high bar, appealing to the salons that include aristocrats?" Ebner offered, finding an excuse for Miss Fors' inertia.

Xio gave him a blank look, then sighed, "Fors would probably appreciate your excuse for her."

In the afternoon, Ebner had just returned to his teacher's residence when Detective Isengard called him over and pointed to a stack of files, "Now that you're a 'Student of Ratiocination,' help me connect clues from these minor cases. Just a couple of hours a day—it'll be good for your Acting method. You can spend the rest of the day studying."

"Are all these commissions?" That many? How much does this pay?!

"Of course not! But even if they're not, shouldn't we understand odd events we come across? And as Roselle said, 'Forewarned is forearmed.' Imagine if a client came to us with a mystery we'd already solved! We could display our deductive prowess with real flair." Detective Isengard said this as if it were self-evident.

Ebner could only gape before muttering:

"Beyonders of the Reader pathway truly are show-offs with a flair for sanctimony!"

...

At ten that evening, Maric, dressed in a white shirt and black vest, led his group of zombies out through the back alley behind Braveheart Bar.